Wednesday, August 13, 2014

We were surprised to happen upon this neglected glacière, or icehouse, gaping open on the grounds of the Château de Chenonceau; but even more intrigued by the deteriorated sculpture above its entrance. We can't quite make it out; in its present state it seems to resemble either the head of a hunting dog, a wolf, or even a horse. The masonry structure was built to cover a deep pit where ice was stored.

The very feminine Château de Chenonceau, on the Cher River in the Loire Valley, is the second most visited castle in France, Versailles being of course the first.

Friday, August 8, 2014

When French people feel inclined to take a break and are waxing poetic, they sometimes announce their need with the above expression--one that means it's imperative to stop and rest. So attractive was this downed parasol that we first thought its positioning was intentional. We noticed it while visiting a delightful park of fifty or so old-fashioned outdoor games on the grounds of the Pagode de Chanteloup. Below is an example of one of them, called le jeu des alignements.

Adjoining this area is an Anglo-Chinese garden, as was fashionable during the latter half of the 18th century, but which features child-size pavillons or playhouses.

Vocabulary

breaker: an anglicism for "to take a break" (pronounced brake-ay)

une pause: a breaks'imposer: to be imperative, to imposeposer: to put down; to pose

Sunday, August 3, 2014

We didn't count the steep steps up the narrow, winding staircases of the seven levels of the fanciful Pagode de Chanteloup, but they do add up to an exotic 44-meter ascension. The climb is recommended neither for the faint of heart nor for more than six people at a time.

Erected in 1775 by the affluent Duc de Choiseul, this fabrique de jardinor architectural folie, is bordered by an ornamental lake in the form of a demi-moon. When the duke, once an all-important minister to Louis XV, lost favor with the king he was exiled from the royal court to Chanteloup. On the grounds of his magnificent château there, he built the pagoda and dedicated it to friends and supporters who surrounded him after his fall from power.

The pagoda is all that rests of the estate. The château was entirely destroyed in the 19th century by unscrupulous real estate speculators, loosely known as the bande noire, who after the French Revolution dismantled historic domains in order to resell the buildings' materials and decorative elements. A visit to the pagoda, not far from the royal city of Amboise, is a pleasant interlude when exploring châteaux in the Loire Valley.